Despite the daunting numbers,
Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear (D) is unconcerned about the double-digit
rate in his administration’s signature policy.

“System-wide averages don’t give a good picture of what an individual’s out-of-pocket costs may be,” Beshear said.

Beshear
bypassed the legislature and created Kynect, the nation’s first
state-run health-insurance exchange, through an executive order.

“The
rates for private health plans on Kynect have been filed but have not
yet been approved or certified, so we don’t yet know what the final
numbers will be,” Beshear said. “Changes still may occur, and rates
should be finalized sometime in mid-July, but we do expect that some
plan rates will go down, some will go up, and some will stay close to
the same as last year.”